


Existence

by Aphryl



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: F/M, Happy Ending, dramatic natsu is never a good sign, kind of ooc natsu tbh, long live nalu
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-06
Updated: 2018-09-06
Packaged: 2019-07-07 16:04:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,921
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15911634
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aphryl/pseuds/Aphryl
Summary: This is a past work I posted somewhere, and I just wanted to put it here. I miss my imagination TT___TTAnyways, I hope you enjoyed it! :DDDD





	Existence

Ruins and devastation surrounded the place. The once-majestic land of Magnolia has turned into a bloody battlefield between Fairy Tail and a formidable enemy, Acnologia.

Fairy Tail won, but has given up a great sacrifice for their victory.

Amidst of chaos and devastation, two figures stood out amongst the crimon setting. A familiar blonde girl crouching, wailing her heart out as she cradled a certain pink-haired dragonslayer lying motionless in her lamenting embrace.

She held him dearly and ever so fragile, unlike the old times when she would rather give him a kick and he simply grins childishly towards her as he rubs his pained body part that received the fatal blow.

_But now, it's utterly different._

The rowdy dragonslayer was now in utter silence, sleeping an eternal slumber.

A pool of crimson liquid lie beneath him as it leaks out from his head continuously, tainting his rose locks into a sea of red. Her sorrowful cries reverberating around the currently barren land of Magnolia.

She hopelessly stroked his dirtied rose-coloured locks, trailing her wounded fingers down his bruised and bleeding forehead before stifling another cry of woe.

"Natsu,” She forlornly whispered, her voice hoarse and broken, “Fairy Tail will never be Fairy Tail without you..." She looked at him ever so dearly, yet agony was reflected in her broken eyes.

"S-So please wake up,” She sobbed, tears falling to her comrade’s lifeless face, “for Lisanna, Happy, Gray, Erza, Wendy, Carla, Gajeel, Levy, Mira, Master and everyone is waiting for you to come back..." Her voice trailed off as her voice cracked and sobs prevailed. "Wake up.." She endlessly begged like a mantra, hoping that her voice could replenish the life of the most important person in her heart. Yet she knew that this was the end for her precious hero…

_Unless she does something for him and bring things back to the way they were…_

The blonde stellar mage knew one more way in order for this young man to wake from his slumber.

A forbidden spell she read from a certain book and mastered for years, hoping that this certain spell would be of use in the future. A certain spell that brings forth the power to defy fate… _And seal one’s own._

_"Natsu..."_ She gently whispers to him. "Don't worry... I'll save you.. But... _The moment you open your eyes, it's the time I'll close mine._ " Lucy gently smiled but that gentle expression turned to a firm and determined one. She stood up and closed her eyes, gust forming around her. Her tattered clothes and her blonde hair started floating as she chanted the words:

_  
"I call upon thy stars_

_May thy radiance guide me_

_A willful sacrifice I offer_

_In exchange for a life I treasure_

_**Celestial Forbidden Art: Divine Retribution— Death Reverse!"** _

Lucy's keys started glowing from her brown pocket attached to her belt and floated midair, circling around her and Natsu.

"You always protected me with all your might, now, it's my turn to return all those favors back." She warmly said as her lips slowly curved upward.

The keys flew towards the ground around them and implanted themselves firmly on it. They began glowing brightly and a huge magic circle appeared beneath them. Lucy opened her eyes and gently picked up Natsu’s body, placing him in the middle of the circle where a bright pillar of light shone towards the sky, dark clouds forming around it.

As he settled Natsu there, Lucy motioned her arms upwards, putting her hands in front of her and towards the column of light, closing her eyes in the process.

"A bright future with everyone else in the guild..." Lucy smiled bitterly, remembering her daily life with Fairy Tail. Those fun memories shall turn into nothing but distant memories forgotten in the past. "I really wished I could've stayed longer... But you're more important than everything else." She whispered.

Tears started streaming in her closed eyelids. As she opened her eyes, the tears kept on coming. She looked towards the figure bathed in light in the middle of the magic circle and smiled lovingly, not even a single hint of hesitation on her part. She slowly walked towards the figure and the light. Natsu's body began floating midair in front of her. She stifled another pained sob but managed to laugh as she choked on those endless tears streaming on her face.

"You are my best friend, my most important person, my partner and the one I truly loved..."

Lucy's body started disintegrating into bits of light in a fast rate. It was as if her whole body was slowly cracking and turning into dust. She softly held Natsu's peaceful sleeping face for she knew more than anybody else that it was the last time she'll be able to see this person she loved wholeheartedly. More tears flowed from her eyes as the thought that this was her last time seeing him. It was painfully sweet. Memories of his childish grins and gentle smiles flashed before her.

_"I will always protect you. I promise. So never leave my side, okay?"_

She cried more as she remembered Natsu's words. She would be breaking her promise to him, what a cruel friend she was. But what good would that promise bring if he wasn’t by her side anymore?

_“It’s always more fun when we’re together.”_

She may never be by his side ever again, but Fairy Tail would need this idiot more than her. He could always cheer them up and give them hope. She couldn't even imagine Fairy Tail without this rowdy pyromaniac causing troubles for everybody.

But her.. Another mage could take her place and maybe nobody would even notice. _Perhaps this is the best thing to do..._

_**"I will love you always, Natsu Dragneel."** _

As the words escaped Lucy's trembling lips, she went closer to Natsu and kissed his forehead, giving him a final hug before she completely disintegrates into shards of light, her final words echoing in the air.

\-----

"Natzuuuuuu!!!!" a blue cat flew straight towards the sleeping figure in the midst of rubbles, tears flowing from his eyes. He hugged him so hard and decided never let go until his best friend until he wakes up.

"Happy..." Erza softly said towards the blue exceed. She walkes slowly towards the exceed, who's currently wailing and desperately shaking Natsu to wake up. As she reached Happy, she gently placed her hand on his shoulder and shook her head, earning louder sobs. Gray's expression was grim. He seriously didn't know what to know. Natsu may be annoying but he never wanted something bad to happen to a fellow guild member and in fact, a dear ‘friend’.

"Wake up you stupid Flamebrain! The guild’s worried so get the hell u—" He shouted as he desperately thought that insulting him would wake him up. Tears started to form in the corner of his eyes. Erza and Happy were also sobbing.

"WILL YOU SHUT UP AND LET ME SLEEP POPSICLE HEAD!?"

The three were suddenly taken aback as they heard a very familiar voice spoke through their agony.

"N-Nat..su?" Happy said, his eyes trembling and watering as he slowly absorb the fact that his best friend talked— that his best friend was alive.

As they looked up, they saw a pink-haired dragonslayer stir with a pissed off expression on his face. Instead of getting into the usual fight and bickerings, the three mages jumped and hugged him ever-so-tight as they cry for joy, especially Happy.

"Calm down! Geez, what's wrong with you guys?" Natsu squirmed from their little group hug, trying to get away from Erza's firm embrace, Happy's little paws and Gray's cold hands. Natsu examined their surroundings and saw Acnologia lying lifelessly on the ground, a hundred meters away from them. It was as if he naturally asked for a certain question but hesitated as he suddenly wasn’t sure about what he was blabbering about.

"Where's everybody? Where's L—"

Natsu was cut off and was taken aback by his own words.

Who was he going to say again?

"Everybody's fine and resting in the temporary guild camp we built. The citizens were also evacuated before Acnologia attacked." Erza said. Natsu actually wasn't listening at that moment. His mind lingering on his question about who he was particularly searching for besides ‘everyone’. He was still thinking about that one thing he forgot. He feels that there's this huge gap in him, like he forgot something or somebody very important to him.

"Natsuuu, Lisanna's already resting at the camp." Happy said. Natsu was snapped back to reality as he heard Lisanna's name. 'It's probably Lisanna...' he thought. He shrugged off the feeling and wobbly stood up as he went to the camp together with the rest of his team. He still couldn't shake off the incomplete feeling and it's seriously bugging him. It was as if his life was a huge jigsaw puzzle and a large portion of it was missing.

"—ing. Oi Natsu you're not listening!" Lisanna pouted towards Natsu. He was silent the whole time and it was something not normal. "Are you okay?" Lisanna said worriedly. Natsu sighed. Well she is his best friend, so spilling some problem won't hurt. That’s what friends are for anyways—helping each other.

"Lisanna, did you ever feel sometimes that you're missing something important in your life?" Natsu asked. Lisanna raised her brow. Why was Natsu getting so... _deep_ all of a sudden?

"Don't laugh okay. You see Lisanna, I have this feeling that I'm forgetting something very important for me… And it's seriously bugging me for a while." He sighed. Lisanna was utterly speechless. She didn't know that Natsu had this... serious side of him. It was weird.

"Uhm, well you see Natsu, I’m not sure since I really haven’t felt that yet. I'm sure you'll remember it since as you say, it's something important to you. Probably in the right time. So don't rush it." She answered softly to Natsu, still absorbing the fact that Natsu even thinks sometimes. She smiled gently towards him and he returns it with the typical childish grin.

"Thanks Lisanna!" He shouts as he runs off from the temporary guild tent. 

\-----  
_  
"Natsuuuuu!! Happy!!! How many times do I have to tell you to stop messing with my room!!" A certain figure stood in front of Natsu. Blonde locks falling down in her mysterious and blurred face. A shrilling yet absolutely familiar voice echoed across the ever-so-familiar pink room._

_"Oh come on L—"_

_"GET OUT!" She shrieked as she saw the blue exceed slipping out some fish from her fridge. Natsu just knew how pissed she was and it was eerily scary how he knew that it's not good for them if they do something more to piss her off._

_Hell would break lose._

_"A-Aye!" Natsu and Happy rushed off from the window, earning a "STOP USING THE WINDOW AND USE THE DOOR DAMMIT!" yell for which they snickered about, flying off using their ever-so-convenient escape route.  
_

\-----

Natsu shot up from his temporary hammock he made from straw and some cloth he found in the currently wrecked city of Magnolia. He kinda had to recycle stuff from his blown up house too, so he picked up some furniture he could still use and placed it in the camp. He panted as he wildly scanned his surroundings, realizing that he was in his warm tent. His thoughts lingered back to his dream. It was all too familiar for him. It was as if it really happened some time ago.

Who was the girl with blonde hair? Why do they seem so… close?

Questions came to his mind one after another so he decided to go out and have some air to relax his mind.

Going out of his tent, wrecked surroundings and some familiar construction workers greeted him. Fairy Tail decided to help in restoring Magnolia, starting from building the citizen’s houses and some establishments. Erza's voice reverberated as she ordered Jet and Droy to slowly move the block of wood to their right and fit it to the cemented columns of the establishment. Natsu smiled at the sight. Everybody was safe and sound after their battle against Acnologia. Everyone dear to him is alive. He cringed upon the word. He felt that something was utterly wrong with that word and he didn’t know why.

"Natsuuuuuu~" Happy flew and smacked right into his face. He laughed to his partner's enthusiasm. He wondered why he was so hyped up early in the morning.

"It's already 2 in the afternoon." Happy plainly said as if he read his partner's thoughts. "I know you're thinking it's early in the morning.." The exceed replied again with a bored tone. Natsu raised his brow towards the exceed.

"Anyways, NATSUUU!! I had this dream last night!!" The exceed said as he munched on a fish that magically appeared from nowhere. Natsu remembered his dream. Was it possible that they had the same dream?

"Well you see…” Happy decided to cut it off, wanting some epic tension before he says something awesome to him. Natsu anticipated silently. “Carla accepted my fish!!" Happy shouted, bursting in pure joy as he flew around and circled around his partner. Natsu chuckled and sighed in relief. Nah, he couldn't have the same dream. He didn't even know why the dream was bugging him so he finally shrugged it off.

The rest of the day came and Natsu found himself staring at the stars glimmering across the dark abyssal sky. He wondered why he suddenly had the urge to go stargazing when in fact, he always thought it was boring to do so before.

He leisurely lie under the stars, feeling the cool breeze brushing against his warm skin. His soft rose-coloured hair dancing along with it. He was completely at peace when he heard steps going to his location. It was faint but he had kept his guard up, waiting for it to pounce on him or attack him. He still kept his lying position and acted that he didn't notice the faint sounds he heard.

"Natsuuuuuu!!!!"

Alas, it was another one of a certain blue exceed's pounce hugs on his partner. Natsu finally let go of the breath he never knew he was holding and smiled towards him. Happy took small steps and landed beside Natsu, lying down beside him.

There was a comfortable silence between the two when Happy decided to break the ice.

"Neh Natsu..." Happy started.

"Hmm?"

"Lately, I think I feel somehow empty and that something was missing from me..."

Natsu was taken aback. He didn't expect a serious talk from Happy coming. And the fact that he also knew what he was talking about was unsettling. Still, he did not utter a word so Happy decided to go on.

"And lately, I have these dreams with a girl with blonde hair. She was always so noisy and shouting and always beat the hell out of us! She's like the spawn of Erza!!" Happy said, trembling as he remembered the dreams. Natsu looked to his partner and started to suspect that they really have some connection with the blonde girl, knowing that they have similar dreams about her. Happy kept babbling about this mysterious person and how comparable her wrath is with Erza. Natsu kept on listening silently.

"But you know,” Happy suddenly had this calm and happy expression on his face, “She was kind and fun to be with!! And I have this longing feeling as if we know her so much." Happy ended. Natsu kept silent but agreed on his partner's final statement.

"Natsu?" Happy asked, wondering why he didn't actually spoke a word the whole time. It was weird. You couldn't say 'Natsu' and 'silence' in the same sentence. Those words are completely classified antonyms. "I actually have the same dreams, Happy. I saw the girl and also felt some connection..." Natsu finally spoke but his words were soft. Happy was surprised. "You do?! Same dreams?!" Happy exclaimed, earning a nod and a chuckle from Natsu.

"But the thing is, we don't remember who she is or if she even existed..." Natsu dejectedly said. Happy's enthusiastic mood suddenly vanished. Noticing this, he tried to cheer Natsu up.

"Don't worry Happy! We'll just have to search for the girl's identity! THEN we'll get answers." He said, showing off his famous grin. Happy spirits were back and happily went back to telling more dreams about the mysterious blonde girl when suddenly, a memory flashed in his mind.

\-----  
_  
"You're such an idiot. It's called "Ursa Major", baka!" The blonde girl giggled. They were lying on the grass and staring at the stars— just like what they were currently doing. Happy was lying between with them, happily munching his fish._

_"Aye! Natsu's an idiot!" Happy joyfully exclaimed as if stating one of the facts of the world._

_"Oi Happy! That's mean! That's what Igneel taught me so shut up!" Natsu's face was red, showing his embarrassment. The girl and Happy laughed heartily._

_"Then what's that?" The girl pointed over some constellation on their right._

_"Hmmmm.. Ah I remember! The big cup!" He proudly answered, earning series of laughs and 'Oh-my-goodness-he's-beyond-stupid'._

_"It's 'dipper' not 'cup' idiot!" Then they laughed again. They were even holding their tummy and crouching, slamming their hands to the ground and laughing their eyes out._

_Natsu 'Hmmpph'-ed and turned his back against them in embarrassment and irritation for making fun of. Soon, the laughter died out and the silence came._

_"Sorry Natsu, I was just joking. I'm actually impressed you knew lots about stars and Igneel taught them to you." She gently said, whispering it against the wind. Natsu slowly turned to look at her if she was sincere with the apology._

_He saw a lovingly gentle expression on her face that made his heart beat faster than it's normal pace. Her blonde locks fell messily on her face yet she still looked gorgeous with the moonlight dawning on her face. He grinned towards her in return, earning a slight blush on her cheeks._

_"They lllliiikkkkeeee each otherr." Happy playfully rolled his tongue, snickering behind his paw on his mouth._

_"Shut up!!" They screamed in unison, laughing afterwards..  
_

\-----

"What was that?!" Natsu snapped back to reality, finding a tranced Happy by his side. He wasn’t even sleeping yet! How come he saw another one of those dreams with the blonde girl?! It seems that Happy also saw what he saw.

Happy finally woke from his trance and looked at Natsu with his surprised eyes. "Did you see that, Natsu?!" Happy exclaimed in pure shock. Natsu chuckled and nodded. "WHOA! Who is she?!?!" Happy said, distressed and awe. It was as if they needed to find out who she was.

Natsu decided to do it tomorrow. With a yawn, he drowzily stood up. "That can wait, Happy. I wanna sleep I feel so tired."

"Aye.." Happy said, finally feeling fatigued. He wobbly followed Natsu towards the tent and slept.

\-----  
_  
"Igneel!! He's in Hargeon! Come on Happy, let's go!!!" Natsu happily said towards Happy._

_"Aye!"_

_They immediately packed themselves and ran towards the train station. The scene suddenly changed back to the old Fairy Tail building. The blonde girl was behind Natsu while he was looking at the request board lazily._

_" Natsu look at this!! I got Fairy Tail’s mark!!" She enthusiastically exclaimed._

_"That's great Luigi."_

_"It's Lucy!"_

_Then everything was black.  
_

\-----

"Natsu! Come on get up!!!!" Happy shouted directly to his partner's ear. Natsu immediately shot up and sat straight as he glared towards Happy. Happy smiled.

"Geez, what's with you all of a sudden, Happy? So noisy in the morning! You're becoming like Lu...c…y...."

Natsu was taken aback upon the last word he said. Then it dawned on them. The girl was named Lucy!! Happy enthusiastically flew around in circles as he had this tingly feeling since last night's dream. Her name was Lucy! They felt that the pieces were slowly coming together.

"Natsu! Let's pack!" Happy joyfully said. Natsu gave him a questioning look. "We're going to Hargeon!! I think we first met her there so we're going there to see if more memories would come back. We might be lucky to even see her there!" Happy said plainly as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

The two immediately packed themselves. As they went out of the tent, three familiar figures stood in front of them.

"And where do you think you're going?" A certain red-haired requip mage said with a stern voice, making Natsu and Happy shiver. She was wearing an armor and was crossing her arms with a serious look on her face. On her left was a raven-haired man with a distinct scar on his forehead. His hands were on his pockets and had this bored look on his face. A blue-haired mage wearing an adorable white dress with frills and red ribbons stood timidly on her left. A white exceed flew beside the petite blue-haired girl.

"E-Erza."

The two squeaked as they trembled in fear, thinking of any lie that would definitely give them a harsher punishment after going back. But they desperately need to know who Lucy was and why does she look so familiar to them. They were surprised when a sudden sincere smile crept into Erza's face.

"You're not thinking of leaving your team and search for Lucy alone, right?" Natsu and Happy were more surprised when they heard Lucy's name. Erza smirked.

"That's right Flamebrain. Don't take all the fun by yourselves." Gray said nonchalantly, having that smug face.

"I think Lucy-san was also a part of Team Natsu. C-Can I g-go too, Natsu-san?" Wendy bashfully said. Carla scoffed.

"I guess it can't be helped since this Lucy got me curious too." Carla said.

"Carla!" Happy flew towards her. "Do you want some fish?" Happy offered. "You're so noisiy he-cat." She scoffed again. The rest just laughed.

"Yosh! I'm all fired up!" And with that, the journey for Lucy's whereabouts has began.

\-----

"How'd you guys know about Lucy anyways?" Happy wondered as he sat beside Natsu who was made unconscious by Erza before the train even started to move.

"We had dreams, no—more like visions and memories we had with her." Erza said.

"Same with me and Natsu!" Happy said. They began telling each other what their memories of Lucy was. They knew that she was a very kind person, and beautiful too. They also knew that she was exceptionally close with Happy and Natsu as Happy told them lots of stories and how they were always together with each other most of the time.

As they arrived at Hargeon, Natsu was back in action They began searching for Lucy based on their memories. As Natsu stumbled upon a certain area, a memories flashed one after another.  
_  
"He is really disgusting, right? Thank you for saving me!"_

_"I am Lucy. Nice to meet you."_

_“Natsu and Happy, right?”_

_"A dragon?! There is no way such a thing would be in the middle of a town, right?!"_  
  
Natsu clutched to his head as the memories flowed endlessly.  
__  
“But is it okay to include someone like me?”

_“That’s not it.”_

_“It’s because it IS you, Lucy.”_

_“Aye!”_

_“Without you, it feels like something is missing, you know?”_  
  
One by one, pieces of memories and realizations came back to him. The blurry image of the blonde in his dreams started getting clearer by the second. Painful and happy memories together with Happy, rowdy and destructive missions with Team Natsu, even quests they went on together.

_**“It’s always more fun when we’re together.”** _

How could he forget Lucy?! She was his best friend, his partner, the one he love. Tears started flowing to his eyes as he realized who Lucy was. His hunch was right, she really is important to him.

Where is she now? What actually happened?

Then visions started to cloud in his mind again.

\-----  
_  
"Natsu, Fairy Tail will never be Fairy Tail without you..."_

_"So wake up, for Lisanna, Happy, Gray, Erza, Wendy, Carla, Gajeel, Levy, Mira, Master and everyone is waiting for you to come back..."_

_"Natsu..." She gently whispers to him._

_"The moment you open your eyes, I shall close mine."_

_“Celestial Forbidden Art: Divine Retribution—Death Reverse!"_

_Lucy's keys started glowing from her pocket and floated midair, circling around her and Natsu. "You always protected me with all your might, now, it's my turn to return all those favors back." She said as she smiled._

_The keys flew towards the ground and implanted themselves firmly on it. They began glowing brightly and a huge magic circle appeared beneath them. Lucy gently placed him in the middle of the circle where a bright pillar of light shone._

_Lucy raised her arms, putting them in front of her and towards the column of light, closing her eyes in thr process._

_"A bright future with everyone with the guild. I really wished I could've lasted longer... But you're more important than everything else."_

_Tears started streaming in her closed eyelids and as she opened her eyes, the tears kept on coming. She looked towards the figure bathed in light in the middle of the magic circle and smiled lovingly. She slowly walked towards the figure and the light as Natsu's body began floating midair levelling her._

_"You are my best friend, my most important person, my partner and the one I love..."_

_Lucy's body startes disintegrating into bits of light in a fast rate. She held his peaceful sleeping face. More tears flowed from her eyes as the thought that this was her last time seeing him. It was painfully sweet._

_"I will love you always, Natsu Dragneel." As the words escaped Lucy's trembling lips, she went closer to Natsu and kissed his forehead, giving him a final hug before she completely disintegrates into shards of light, her final words echoing in the air.  
_

\-----

Natsu screamed in pain as the final bits of the vision entered his mind. He was screaming— both because of pain and sorrow. Lucy loved him and now…

_**She's gone.** _

Natsu let out an shrilling and pained scream as he wailed and cried in agony. Soon, the rest of the gang were in front of him, panting and disoriented.

"What the hell happened, Charcoal Head?!" Gray managed to say in between breaths. He observed the pink-haired dragonslayer on his knees in the middle of the plaza-like part of the town. Natsu simply had his head down, his pink locks shadowing his eyes. But everybody knew he was crying, for his face glistened in water, obviously coming from his eyes.

"Natsu..." Happy said, worried with Natsu. "What happened?" Erza said sternly, but have this worried look. She could see he's pained and very... broken?

Natsu raised his head, his expression mortified and miserable. The others were utterly surprised. What just happened to make their cheerful Natsu this way?

"She's— _gone_..." Natsu barely whispered, looking back to the ground. It was as everything he says pierced his heart.

"S-She... died... and i-it’s… because of... m-me.." He said as he tightened his grip. He gritted his teeth so hard that his mouth started bleeding. Everybody panicked, trying to calm him down. His emotions were all raging. Sorrow, anger, disappointment—his mind was too clouded to even notice his friends, worried and questioning. He just wanted to see Lucy so badly, hug her protectively in his embrace and see her warm smiles that touched his heart since the beginning. He _needs_ to see her.

"NATSU!" Erza shouted, bringing him back to reality. Her expression was indescribable. She was angry, confused, worried— she didn't know what to do. Natsu's hand and mouth were bleeding, Natsu was acting all weird.

With a deep breath, Natsu sternly yet softly told them the story about Lucy and what happened to the battle of the Fairies versus Acnologia.

Soon enough, the same with Natsu, memories started flooding them. They began screaming in pain as they clutched onto their heads and cringed on the floor. Natsu simply looked at them and waited for them to finish. As soon as they remembered everything, they began crying. Happy sobbed loudly, Erza and Gray grief-stricken and Wendy covering her face with her hands yet the tears never stopped coming— the same devastated state he in moments ago.

Why Lucy? Why did you do that?!

Natsu tightened his grip more, ignoring the pain slowly stinging his bloody hands. He didn't care, he was emotionally wounded.

_"I will love you always, Natsu Dragneel."_

A faint voice seethed through the wails, reverberating in Natsu’s ears. Natsu looked around wildly, finding the source of the voice. The overly familiar and gentle voice he knew and loved. He heard the familiar jingle of keys and immediately ran towards it, leaving his bawling friends alone. He searched through the town, heading towards the source of the jingling of the keys.

"Lucy!!" Natsu was desperately yelling her name all over the town. He stopped over shops and came across certain crowds of people where he got to ask if they ever saw a blonde girl somewhere in town. Unfortunately, none of them saw her. He kept searching the whole day, not even thinking about what Erza and the others were doing or where they were. The most important thing now is that he heard her. _‘I’m sure I heard Lucy!’_ He though, not losing the firm resolve he had even if he was searching half of the day yet still having no clues on her whereabouts.

He finally stopped when the sound of the keys vanished. He found himself standing on the shores of Hargeon port. It was where the ship of the fake Salamander landed before, and it was because of Lucy’s spirit, Aquarius... His heart ached as he remembered that this was the place where he first held Lucy's delicate, soft hand as he carelessly dragged her, bringing her to Fairy Tail. Everything started in this particular place, and such a wonderful thing suddenly became a distant, sorrowful memory to him.

"LUCY!!" Natsu roared miserably. The crashing of the waves resounding on the shore was the only reply he heard. He felt weak, sad and tired. Fatigued, he knelt on the brittle sand, crying his heart out.

When suddenly an all too familiar Vanilla-and-Strawberry scent filled the moist, salty air. Natsu shot up, turning his head to every direction to find the source of the smell. He knew that she was near him. He don’t know why and how, he just knew. As he finally tilted his head towards his right, a figure hiding in the shadows of the shop at the end of the shore slowly revealed itself.

The purplish twilight sky was painted with orange streaks of light. The cloaked figure started stepping out of the shadows and walking towards Natsu. He intently watched the mysterious figure as it slowly exposed its identity.

As the setting sun slowly revealed the lower half of its body, Natsu was completely silent and frozen on his spot. With every step comes in a giddy and warm feeling he always knew he only felt to a certain somebody. As the figure took another step, a familiar pink tattoo could be seen on its right hand. Simply seeing the familiar pink insignia on the figure's right hand made Natsu’s heart race crazily like those times when Fairy Tail faced all those trials that challenged the guild’s undying bond, still coming out victorious as they faced those odds together.

But this time, adrenaline wasn't the reason why his heart raced and body all tingly and giddy.

The figure suddenly stopped walking as the shadows only hid its upper torso near its face. He suddenly held his breath when he heard the figure speak. “H-Hey…” It croaked. Just by hearing that subtle and uncertain tone he knew so well, he finally moved, rushing towards the figure in a swift pace and abruptly stops right in front of it.

He gave a tight, rib-wrecking hug to the figure, making it squeal in surprise.

"N-Natsu! You're killing me!"

Natsu hugged it more tightly, as if you'll need to kill him first before he let go. That voice, that smell, gentle and familiar gestures and dialogues he never thought he would ever hear again was heard in that exact moment. Natsu hugged and clung onto it as if he held his dear life. The figure was panicking, planning to kick him hard.

"I'll never let you go so don't leave my side ever again! Lucy!!" Natsu croaked, his voice trembling. Yet his firm grip to her never loosened. His sudden statement surprised her, stopping her in her tracks. The look on her face softened and tears started falling on her face. She placed her hands onto her mouth as she cried. She was back and in his firm arms, holding her dearly yet protectively. Once again, she finally felt the same warmth she had always loved about this stupidly gentle dragonslayer.

The orange light finally made its way to the shadow's face, revealing familiar golden locks and sparkling brown orbs. Her tears sparkled in the warm, orange rays of the setting sun. Natsu finally loosened his grip for a bit, placing one arm around her waist and the other landing gently onto her cheek, wiping the tears pouring out from her eyes. Natsu pulled her body closer to his and placed his forehead to hers, connecting each other’s head as he looked intently towards those pure, brilliant, brown eyes he had always loved staring at.

Lucy, despite the blush slowly creeping to her face, also did the same and stared back into his deep onyx eyes. She saw affection and passion in those eyes, one thing she always loved about this guy standing closely to her. She remembered those final moments when she already thought that she could never see these eyes and his innocent, childish grins, and painfully bid him farewell for she knew that her life was to be obliterated and transferred to him in order to save him from leaving eternally from Fairy Tail—from her.

_But her beloved spirit friends saved her just in time._

Leo collected her magic essence that turned into bits of light right before she completely vanished and performed a spell in order to bring her back. But despite all their efforts, something must still be sacrificed in order for the spell to be complete. It was her _existence_. Believing that someday, he would somehow remember her and find her, she settled in the place where everything started— _Hargeon_.

She owed them her life—her second chance. This time, she knew this second chance given to her shouldn’t be wasted any longer.

_"I love you."_ Lucy bashfully yet silently whispered to him, with all her emotions poured onto those three gentle words that made their hearts beat faster than usual.

Natsu grinned towards her.

_"I will always love you too, Lucy Heartfilia."_ He softly whispered to her. Lucy’s face became utterly red and very warm and Natsu chuckled with the sudden flushed face. As he looked towards her, he just felt this strong urge to kiss her—and he really did.

Natsu slowly leaned in to her and shared a sweet, passionate kiss with his dear best friend, partner, the love of his life, and now, undoubtedly his eternal lover.

**Author's Note:**

> This is a past work I posted somewhere, and I just wanted to put it here. I miss my imagination TT___TT
> 
> Anyways, I hope you enjoyed it! :DDDD


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